Could you go paperless?

Many organisations dream of going paperless but have no idea where to begin with such a project. What better way to keep your office organised and tidy? 40 years after the paperless office was first predicted, how close can you actually get?

The idea of the paperless office was a vision of the future, popularised by a business week article in 1975. 43 years later and we’re still talking about it, but with technologies like tablets, interactive projectors and smartphones, not to mention document capture products and management software, we’re getting much closer. Certainly, we’re using print in a different way.

Most organisations have a policy of storing important business documents on central servers (although several vast banks of filing cabinets remain) and to all intents and purposes, these offices are considered paperless – from a 1975 perspective, anyway. That said, paper does still remain important, but in a more short-term fashion; we tend to print documents to read and review, rather than file and keep.

But the way documents flow through a business still remains in the 1975 era. An invoice, for example, gets placed from desk to desk, pigeonhole to pigeonhole, awaiting approval – rather than using a simple automation system. Many organisations will still be working inefficiently; think about how you process purchase orders, sales packs, or HR documents. They are slowing down the way you work, costing money on your bottom line.

Could you go paperless?

Many organisations dream of going paperless but have no idea where to begin with such a project. What better way to keep your office organised and tidy? 40 years after the paperless office was first predicted, how close can you actually get?

The idea of the paperless office was a vision of the future, popularised by a business week article in 1975. 43 years later and we’re still talking about it, but with technologies like tablets, interactive projectors and smartphones, not to mention document capture products and management software, we’re getting much closer. Certainly, we’re using print in a different way.

Most organisations have a policy of storing important business documents on central servers (although several vast banks of filing cabinets remain) and to all intents and purposes, these offices are considered paperless – from a 1975 perspective, anyway. That said, paper does still remain important, but in a more short-term fashion; we tend to print documents to read and review, rather than file and keep.

But the way documents flow through a business still remains in the 1975 era. An invoice, for example, gets placed from desk to desk, pigeonhole to pigeonhole, awaiting approval – rather than using a simple automation system. Many organisations will still be working inefficiently; think about how you process purchase orders, sales packs, or HR documents. They are slowing down the way you work, costing money on your bottom line.